The present invention relates generally to telephone receptacles and, more particularly, to a telephone mounting receptacle having retractable latch members engaging a portion of a telephone.
Cellular communication systems permit a user to communicate telephonically at virtually any location. Because of this unique convenience, the number of cellular telephone users has increased dramatically in recent years. While many users utilize a mobile cellular telephone that is permanently mounted within an automobile ("mobile"), other users opt for a portable cellular telephone that is not restricted for use within the automobile ("portable"), such as Motorola's DYNA T.multidot.A.multidot.C.TM. Cellular Portable Telephone.
While opting for the freedom and versatility of a portable, a user often finds it necessary to utilize such telephones while driving an automobile. Because both eyes and hands must generally be utilized in order to initiate a call, it is advantageous for the driver of an automobile to have a conveniently located mounting receptacle for temporarily supporting the portable. Portable users generally prefer mounting receptacles that can be utilized in conjunction with other "hands free" accessories that effectively allow the portable to function in a manner similar to a conventional telephone speaker phone.
Most of the existing automobile mounting receptacles are designed to accommodate mobile handsets rather than portable units. Many mobile handset mounting receptacles, generally referred to as hang-up cups, are dimensioned to accept the box-like ear piece portion of the handset, which is located at one end of the predominantly longitudinal handset; handsets have a longitudinal dimension that is substantially longer than the transverse dimension that is orthogonal to the longitudinal dimension. The ear piece portion generally contains two molded opposing latching surfaces along the longitudinal axis of the handset that fit corresponding latching members of the hang-up cup. One latching member may be retractable and permit removal of the handset when an actuation force is applied to a side button; however, removal of a handset is generally accomplished by exerting a rotational torque on the handset and pulling it away from the hang-up cup in an up and out fashion; re-attachment of the handset to the hang-up cup is accomplished by reversing the previous movement.
Because the portable does not have a protruding portion with convenient latching surfaces similar to the ear piece portion of the mobile handset, previously known hang-up cups could not readily be utilized to accept the portable. However, because previously known hang-cups generally latch along the longitudinal axis of the ear piece portion, one might try using longitudinal axial latching for portable receptacles. To accomplish longitudinal latching of opposing ends of the portable, the portable receptacle must, unfortunately, be fabricated to extend along the entire longitudinal length of the portable, which in turn requires an automobile mounting surface that corresponds to the lengthy dimensions of the portable.
Because the portable receptacle contacts the entire longitudinal length of the portable, the user may have difficulty when attempting to remove the portable from the portable receptacle. Inability to extend the thumb and forefinger around the perimeter of a portion of the portable while it is retained in the portable receptacle may not only hamper removal of the received portable, but also cause the user to drop the portable during the removal process.
The longitudinal latching must also account for the relatively heavy weight of the portable in reference to that of the mobile handset. Because strong gravitational forces are imparted on both the portable and the receptacle while the automobile is moving, longer latching surfaces extending into corresponding deep molded housing notches of the portable are required to adequately anchor the accepted portable. Unfortunately, deep notches impact the already limited space devoted to the portable's internal electrical components. Also, the longitudinal latching mechanism will have to place additional force on the latch-portable contact points in order to ensure retention of the accepted portable while the automobile is moving. However, the user must then exert additional force when removing the portable from the receptacle or inserting the portable into the receptacle .